Closure



Mmch 22, 1938. a. voN BUL'rzlNGsLwEN 2,112,125

f CLOSURE Filed Sept. 24, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 `F2123 17.24 E122 a? a9y sz ,85,84 i

ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 22, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFlcE oLosUnE l fBruno von Biiltziligslwen, New York,'N. Y.

\ Application september 24, 1934, serial No. 745,214

20 Claims.

' 5 simple closure or cap for containers which remains on the containenat all times, whether the container is open or closed, smthat the cap orclosure is not lost. A second object of this invention is to provide \,aclosure for a container which allows adjustments between the open andclosed positions, so that there are intermediate partially openpositions, controlling the dispensation at will.

A third object of this invention is to provide a double closure of thechannels through which dispensation takes place. More particularly, inconnection with dispensing necks,` an inner as well as an outer closurefor the dispensing opening are comprised in one cap. A further object ofthis invention is to provide a closure in which the container or anextension thereof or the closing means are in slidable abutment atsubstantially all points, so that a. rela-- tively thin material may beused for the various parts, 'the various thin layers of abutting partsreenforcing each other.

Still another object of this invention provides for an enclosure whichmay be manipulated with extreme ease, so that the container as well asthe opening and closing thereof may be brought about by manipulationwith one hand only, the other hand of the user being free to be usedotherwise.

Another object of this invention is to provide slidable means on acontainer, which provide a double or triple closing, so that not onlyliquids, but also fluids generally, for instance aromatic liquids, maybe kept in such containers, ready for instant use and still tightlyclosed.

A further object of this invention is to have, in

l connection with a cap which provides a double closure, meansdisplacing on the closed container the fluid to lbe dispensed from allvoids of the closure which it may ll while the closure is open.

Additional objects shall be brought forth and will be more readilyunderstood from the following description and the accompanying exemplaryillustrations, of which: Y

Figs. 1 and 2 show collapsible tubes closed by closures or caps of myinvention, the former being directed to an arrangement with a control byrotation, the latter a modiiication in which the closing is controlledby reciprocating the cap.

Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 6 are detailed sections corresponding to the showingof Fig. 1:

' 55 Fig. 3 shows the closure in a closed position and is the top viewof a. cross-section at a level indicated by a dot-dash line and bynumeral 3 in Fig. 5.

Fig. 4 is a corresponding view in which the closure is open.

Figs. 5 and 6 are cross-sectioned elevations of the upper end of theclosed and open container, respectively.

Fig. 9 shows an elevation of the upper end of the container of Figs. 1and 3 to 6, without the cap or closure. I

Figs. 7, v8 and 10 to 12 relate to the modication shown in Fig. 2:

Figs. 'I and 8 show cross-sectioned top views of the closed and opencontainer, respectively, said cross-sections being taken along linesidentified by the numerals of said figures in Figures 10 and l1.

Figs. 10 and 11 are sectional elevations corresponding to the positionsof Figs. 7 and 8, respectively. v

The, cross-section of Fig. 12l is similar to that of Fig. 10, but showsa modified shape of the cap.

Fig. 13 is the elevation of a. bottle provided with 4my closure.

Figs. 14 and 15 show cross-sectioned elevations of the upper end of sucha bottle, the closure being in an open position in the former and closedin the latter ilgure.

Figs. 16 to 19 serve to illustrate another modiilcation of my invention:

Figs. 16 and 17 are cross-sectioned elevations in which the closure isin a closed and opened position, respectively. i

Fig. 18 is a side view of a plug used in the modication of Figs. 16 and17.

Fig. 19 shows a front view of the neck of the respective container. y

Figs. 20 to 24 illustrate containers and caps or closures of myinvention which may be rotated and as well may be moved axiallyrelatively to the container.

Figs. 20 and 21, respectively, show the crosssectioned elevation of amodified closure in a closed and open position; the cap moves along aspiral path when opened or closed. In Fig. 20, holes are omitted.

Fig. 22 shows a side view of the neck of the bottle of the-modificationsof Figs. 20 and 21.

Figs. 23 and 24 show, in similar views, necks, which are provided withvarious guide grooves.

Figs. 25 and 26 show, in open and closed positions respectively,cross-sectioned elevations of another modification of my invention,which provides an extension on the container; that exf.

sov

tension cooperates with the closure and forms part thereof.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the various views.

Figs. 1 and 2 exemplarily show collapsible tubes 3| and 32 which areexecuted substantially according to present-day practice in this art,except that the respective necks 33 and 34 are particularly shaped inaccordance with my invention. Upon the necks 33 and 34 of the containersof Figs. 1 and 2 are applied the closures 35 and 36, respectively. Figs.3 and 4 show the cap 35 to be depressed at one point, and the resultingindentation 31 extends into a substantially semi-circular groove 38provided in the neck 33.

At one side the cap 35 is perforated by an opening 39 which is shown tobe circular but which may assume any shape Apreferredly suited for thedispensation of the contents of the container or collapsible tube 3|. l

The cap 35 is arbitrarily indicated to be slidably rotatable throughsubstantially 180 upon the neck 33; the extent to which said cap may berotated is determined by the length of the groove 33, the ends of whichserve as stops for the indentation` 31 of cap 35. At` one extremeposition (Figs. 4 and 6) of'rotation of cap 35, the opening 39 in thecap 35 registers with an opening 40 in the neck 33. If the opening 39 isdisposed substantially at the level of the upper part of the neck 33,-asit is exemplarily shown in the drawings,then the opening 46 may assumethe shape of a notch (Fig. 9), extending down into the neck 33.

In the cap 35 is xedly mounted a hollow or solid core or plug 4|, theupper end of which, the head 42, forms part of said cap or substantiallynts diametrically into the cap 35, abuts upon the bottom of said cap,which is suitably fastened therein, for instance by the dents 43 of saidcap, which are depressed into correspond.- ing indentations in the head42, so that the cap and plug are in a relatively ilxed position. The

head slidably abuts upon the neck 33, and an extension, a stem 44,depends in slidable abutment from the head 42 into the opening of theneck 33. The stem 44 is provided with a recess 45, which downwardlyopens into the container and which also issues through one side of thestem in registering alignment with the opening 39 in cap 35. It will beunderstood that the groove or recess 45 also registers with the openingor notch 40 in the neck of the container, when the cap or closure 35 isin the open position of Figs. 4 and 6. But in the closed position ofFigs. 1, 3 and 5, the recess 45 is laterally closed by the wall of neck33, and in that position said wall also closes the opening 39 of thecap; whereas in that same position the opening or notch 46 in the neck33 is closed at one end and at the top by the stem 44 and the head 42 ofthe plug 4|, respectively, and at the other end by the wall of the cap35. A double closure of the containery or collapsibletube 4I istherefore provided for as soon as the opening 39 and groove 45 on onehand, and the opening and notch on the other hand have been shifted outof registering alignment.

an arrangement in a closed and open position, respectively.

In analogy to the arrangement of the prior modification, the cap 36 withperforation 46 is exemplarily attached by the dent 41 upon indentationsin the head 49 of the plug 48, but the stem 50 of plug 48 and thecylindrical part of cap 36 are longer, in order to bring about a doubleclosing in the covered position 'of the cap of Figs. 7 and 10 and inorder to provide the necessary mechanical guidance in the raised .andopen position of Figs. 8 and 11.

The neck 34 of the container or collapsible tube 32 is provided withlongitudinal (vertical) groove 5| in which is slidably disposed thedepressed dent 52 of the cap 36. The recess or groove 53 in the stem 50registers with the opening 46, and they both are closed by the neck 34in the position of Fig. 10. In the open position of Fig. 11, in whichthe cap 36 is raised, the opening 46 and opening, groove or' recess 53register with a hole or opening 54 extending through the wall of theneck 34 so that in that position the contents of the container orcollapsible tube may be dispensed.

The modiiication of Fig. 12 corresponds in respect to most details withthe modiication just described, but the plug 48 is provided with adiifer'ently shaped head 55, said head exceeding in diameter thediameter of the neck 34. Correspondingly, the cap 56 of this modicationis bulged out at the bottom to fit around said large head 55 of the plug48, thus offering a knob-like part, which facilitates engagement andgripping of the cap for the purpose of manipulation in the opening andclosing operations. Of course the upper part of the plugs 4| or 48 maythus be shaped at will, and the outer surface of the cap may bevariously adapted, e. g., by knurling, to such purpose or for purposesof adornment.

While I reserve the right to apply any materials for the various partsof my invention, the selection of which,-for the cap, plug and also forthe neck of the container,suggests itself to those versed in these arts,it is understood that certain materials prove particularly useful onaccount of economic or manufacturing considerations. While the cap ispreferably made of metal and preferably drawn or stamped and may thus beexecuted very thinly, I find certain mouldable materials, e. g.,condensation products, to be very useful for the plug.l Of course thematerials should be chosen so as not to corrode or swell under theinfluence of the fluids accommodated in the container.

While collapsible tubes ordinarily are made of metal, and therefore theneck thereof might also be made of metal, there are many containers, e.g., bottles, in connection with which glass is the mostly used material.For that reason the containers in the remaining figures are indicated tobe executed in glass. Y

While glass containers at the present state of development of the artsmay be moulded very close to the desired dimensions, it may bepreferable to provide in connection with glass, as well as with thecontainers, several steps, for instance on the inside of the neck 6| ofa bottle 62, so that a closure at one or the other point, either inperipheral slidable abutment or in endwise axial abutment is assured.The stem 63 of the plug 64 used in connection with such a bottle mayaccordingly be recessed at 65 near its lower end, the interior of theneck 6| of the 75 6| of the bottle 62 serves to guide the circularmovement of the cap and the radial hole 1| in stem 63 merges 'with anaxially disposed hole 12, registers with the hole 13 in cap 69, and maybe shifted into alignment with the hole 14 extending through the wall ofthe neck 6| when fluid contents of the bottle are to be dispensed.

When it is desirable to provide a container in which all contents,remaining in the container when not in use, are separated from theoutside by a double closure, such a void as occurring in the priorarrangements at 40, 54 and 14 may be eliminated by combining with theclosure a part which iills said void when the bottle is closed. Such apart is indicated at 16 in Fig. 18, representing a key, which forms partof the stem 63 and which matches a square notch 11, provided at theupper end of the neck 6| of the container.

If the cap 69 of such an arrangement is to be retained at all times uponthe bottle, an indentation 18 and a longitudinal (vertical) groove 19,corresponding to the arrangement of Figs. 7, 8, 10 and 11,may beprovided for, and the head may of course assume any preferred shape likethat of Fig. 12.

Since the notch 11 is shown to be rectangular, and since the key 16 iscorrespondingly shaped, the dispensing opening 80 in cap 69 may also beshaped oblong or square, so that the contents of the container may bedispensed in a preferably shaped jet, and the cross-section of said jetis varied according to the height to which the cap is adjusted duringdispensation.

The guide groove in the neck of the bottle, which determines the pathalong which the cap is moved for the purpose of opening and closing thecontainer, may of course be variously disposed. The groove 83 of themodication of Figs. 20, 21 and 22 is for instance helically disposed sothat the cap does not only rotate, but also moves up and down duringopening and closing; such an arrangement entails various advantages;thus for instance an arrangement of this kind will tend to avoid abinding of the parts upon each other because they peripherally as wellas axially slide upon each other. When the groove 83 is disposed at anangle of 45, and the dispensing opening 84 is square, the jet dispensedwill always be square when the closure is fully or partly opened, justas such a square jet will always be provided for if the openings of theprior modications are diamond-shaped.

'A dispensation by way of a plurality of jets may readily be providedfor; and for other purposes, a plurality of openings may be doublyclosed by means of my invention, or such additional openings may beprovided for in order toC vent the voids which are enlarged or disappearduring the opening or closing of the concap, neck and stem, into thegroove 86 in said stem.

In connection with the modication of Figs. 16 to 19 the guide groove 19may be omitted. In that case the closure may be opened and closed andmay also be Afreely removed from the container. In order to provide forsuch removal in Y connection with containers using my invention in othermodifications, and for instance where the container is to beconveniently refilled, I may provide angular extensions of the guide Thegroove 88 on the neck 6| kof Fig. 23 is for instance provided withavertical extension 89 at one end, which clears the indentation 31 guidedin groove 88 so that the cap may be removed. Such an extension may beprovided in connection with grooves 38 or 10. Where there is a verticalgroove 90, like groove 5| of Figs. 10,'

11 and 12, said groove may be extended to the right by a section 9| andthen I may again provide a vertical section of a. groove 92 connectingwith the end of section 9|; thus the indentation of the respective capmay be moved from a closed position at the bottom of groove 90 to anopen position at the ,top end-of said groove, as before. and vice versa;but then the indentation may be swung at the said top level to the rightalong groove section 9|, and along section 92 out of engagement with theneck of the bottle, whereby -the cap is removed from the bottle.

It will. be readily seen that a separate extension 94 may be providedupon the bottle, which is tightly beaded at 95 over a rim 96 encirclingthe neck 6| and which forms an extension in the 'shape of a Asleeveabove vthe top of the neck of the bottle and which Wholly or partlyabuts upon the shiftable closure. In connection with this arrangement Ialso show a variation in the arrangement which serves to engage theclosure upon the container so that it cannot be removed. Instead ofproviding an indentation in the outer cap which engages upon a groove inthe container, I here show an indentation 91 in the extension 94 whichis slidably engaged upon a groove 98 extending around plug 99. The plug99 may o'f course be completely disposed on top of the container neck 6|proper, or a stem extension |90 may depend therefrom into the neck ofthe bottle or container, and engage upon the inside'of the neck of thecontainer in slidable abutment. It will be seen from Figs. 25 and 26that this arrangement allows the channel or opening ||I| between theouter cap |92 and the plug 99 to be made extremely short, because theextension 94 may be a thin sleeve.

The converse,v concentric sleeves extending from a container, a singlecap extending therebetween and suitable openings extending through saidsleevesI and cap within the meaning of this invention, suggests itselfto those skilled in these arts. 'I'herefore this invention isnotvlimited in scope to the exemplar showings disclosed but I desirefull protection within the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a container, a wall with an opening extending therethrough, aclosure longitudinally slidably abutting upon both sides of said walland closing Ilooth ends of said opening, and registering openings insaid closure on opposite sides of said wall, said closure being slidableon said tending therethrough, a closure longitudinally slidably abuttingupon both sides of said wall and closing both ends of said opening,registering openings in said closure on opposite sides of said wall,said closure being slidable on said wall into a position in which theopenings in the closure and in the wall register with each other, andmeans guiding said closure on said wall between a position in which theopenings in said closure register with said openings in said wall and aposition in' which said closure closes the ends of the opening in saidwall and said wall closes said openings in said closure.

3. In combination with a container a closure therefor, comprisingrelatively fixed concentric parts, and a sleeve opening from saidcontainer and longitudinally slidably tting between said parts, saidparts and sleeve being perforated and the perforations registering witheach other and forming an outlet fr-om said container when said closureand sleeve are predeterminedly aligned.

4. In combination with a collapsible tube a closure therefor, comprisingrelatively xed concentric parts, and a sleeve forming part of saidcollapsible tube and longitudinally slidably f1tting between said parts,said parts and sleeve being perforated and the perforations registeringwith each other and forming an outlet from said collapsible tube whensaid closure and sleeve ar predeterminedly aligned.

5. In combination with a bottle a closure therefor, comprisingrelatively xed concentric parts, and a neck on said bottle andlongitudinally slidably tting between said parts, said parts and neckbeing perforated and the perforations registering with each other andforming an outlet from said bottle, when said closure and neck arepredeterminedly aligned.

6. In combination with a container a closure therefor, comprisingrelatively ixed concentric parts, and a sleeve longitudinally slidablytting between said parts, means guiding the relative movement of saidclosure and sleeve, and openings in said sleeve and said parts andforming an outlet for said container when said sleeve and closure arerelatively moved into a predetermined position.

7. In combination with the neck of a container, a closure comprising acap longitudinally slidably fitting over said neck, a stem dependingfrom said cap and slidably tting into said neck, means movably retainingsaid closure on said neck, relatively registering openings in said capand stern, and an opening in said neck normally closed by said cap andstem but registering With said registering openings when said closureand neck are relatively moved into a predeterminedposition.

8. In combination with the neck of a container, a closure comprising acap longitudinally slidably tting over said neck, a stem depending fromsaid cap and slidably tting intoI said neck, means longitudinallymovably retaining said closure on said neck, relatively registeringopenings in said cap and stem, and an opening in said neck normallyclosed by said cap and stem but registering with said registeringopenings when said closure and neck are relatively moved into apredetermined position.

9. In combination with the neck of a container, a closure comprisin-g acap longitudinally slidably tting over said neck, a stem depending fromsaid cap and slidably tting into said neck, means rotatably retainingsaid closure on said neck, relatively registering openings in said capand stem, and an opening in said neck normally closed by said cap andstem but registering with said registering openings when said closureand neck are relatively moved into a predetermined position.

10. In combination with the neck of a container, a closure comprising acap slidably tting over said neck, a stem depending from said cap andslidably tting into said neck, means guiding said closure on said neckalong a. helical path of sliding movement, relatively registeringopenings in said cap and stem, and an opening in said neck normallyclosed by said cap and stem but registering with said registeringopenings when said closure and neck are relatively moved into apredetermined position, the lead of said helical path exceeding theextent of said opening in an axial direction.

11. In combination with a neck extending from a container, a closurelongitudinally slidably ez'.- tending over, onto and into said neck, agroove in said neck, a protuberance extending from said closure intosaid groove, slidable therein and vguiding said closure relatively tosaid neck between an open and closed position, and openings in said neckand in said closure registering with each other in said open position.

12. In combination with a neck extending from a container, a groovedclosure longitudinally slidably extending over, onto and into said neck,a protuberance extending' from said neck into a groove in said closure,slidable therein and guiding said closure relatively to said neckbetween an open and closed position, and openings in said neck and insaid closure registering with each other in said open position.

13. In combination with a container, a neck extending from saidcontainer and perforated on opposite sides, and a closure slidablyabutting upon the inside and outside of said neck and normally closingsaid perforations, said closure being provided with perforationsregistering with the inner and outer ends of said perforations in saidneck when it is predeterminedly aligned on said neck, sets of saidaligned perforations providing a fluid outlet and an air inlet on saidcontainer.

14. In combination with a neck of a container, a closure longitudinallyslidably extending into, and over said neck, means predeterminedlyguiding said closure on said neck between extreme positions in whichsaid container is open and closed, and an opening extending in the openposition of said closure from the outside through said closure, saidneck and again throughV said closure into the inside of said container.

15. In combination with a neck on a container, a closure longitudinallyslidably extending over the outer and inner faces of said neck, a groovein Said neck, and an indentation in said closure extending into saidgroove in said neck and guided therein.

16. In a combination with a neck on a container, a closure slidablyextending over the outer and inner faces of said neck, a groove in saidneck, an indentation in said closure extending into said groove in saidneck and guided therein, and an angular extension of said groove openingfrom the end of said neck and facilitating the removal of said closurefrom said neck.

17. On a container, a neck section and a closure section inlongitudinally slidable abutment, the closure section covering theinside, end and outside of said neck section, a guide groove on one ofsaid sections, and a protuberance on the other section extending intosaid groove, and a hole i ananas extendiils4 through said sections and(meningI 1 from the-*inside of said container to the outside,

the part of said hole in said neck section being l.

-V closure and surrounded by said wall and provid-ed with a recessextending from an edge between two adjacent faces of said part, whereone of said faces abuts upon said wall and the other confronts theinside of said conta er.

19. In combination with a container, a neck extending iromsaid containerand perforated on opposite sides, a closure slidably abutting upon` theinside and outside of said-neck and normally -closing said perforations,said closure being provided with perforations registering with the innerand outer ends of said perforations, in said neck when it ispredeterminedly aligned on said neck, sets of said aligned perforationsproviding a fluid outlet andan air inletonl said container, and meansfor guiding said closure on said neck in a movement between the positionwhere said closure closes said perforations and said position ofpredetermined alignment and for permitting removal of said closure fromsaid neck from said position 'of alignment in a direction angular tothat of said guided movement.

20. A container, comprising a. cylindrical wall forming a neck andhaving a round hole extending transverselythrough said neck, a groove ofvlimited length extending upon the outside of said t neck, a closurehaving an outer cylindrical part movement of said closure on said neck,said core part being provided wtih a hole registering with said openingand permanently opening into said container by Way of the bottom of said.core part, said parts of said closure closing opposite ends,respectively, ofsaid transver hol in said neck, when said closure andneck are relatively in the other one of said two extreme positions.

BRUNO von BL'rzmGsLwEN.

